An eighth world motorcycle championship was scuttled in 2006 when Rossi, Italy's richest athlete, finished a close second in the world championship. Fiat replaced Camel this year as the main sponsor of Rossi's Yamaha team. Rumors swirled that Fiat wanted to do a personal sponsorship deal with Rossi, but found it cheaper to strike a deal as the main sponsor of the Yamaha team.

Earnings estimates are for June 2006 to June 2007. Figures rounded off where appropriate. Exact figures available on Forbes.com. Includes dollars earned solely from entertainment income. Management, agent and attorney fees have not been deducted. Estimates by Forbes; sources include Billboard, Pollstar, Adams Media Research, Nielsen SoundScan and Nielsen BookScan. Rankings are generated by combining earnings with other metrics: Web mentions on Google press clips compiled by LexisNexis; TV/radio mentions by Factiva; and number of times a celebrity's face appeared on the cover of 32 major consumer magazines.

E-Score is a celebrity appeal ranking, comprised of 46 separate personality attributes. E-Score evaluations are provided by E-Poll Market Research, which has a database of more than 2,800 celebrities.